²¹ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and ^(A)faithful servant.^{[a] (B)}You have been faithful over a little; ^(C)I will set you over much. Enter into ^(D)the joy of your master.’

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

25 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ^(A)ten virgins who took their lamps^[a] and went to meet ^(B)the bridegroom.^{[b] 2} Five of them were foolish, and five were ^(C)wise. ³ For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, ⁴ but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. ⁵ As the bridegroom ^(D)was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. ⁶ But ^(E)at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ ⁷ Then all those virgins rose and ^(F)trimmed their lamps. ⁸ And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ ⁹ But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ ¹⁰ And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and ^(G)those who were ready went in with him to ^(H)the marriage feast, and ^(I)the door was shut. ¹¹ Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ^(J)‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ ^12 (K)But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, ^(L)I do not know you.’ ^13 (M)Watch therefore, for you ^(N)know neither the day nor the hour.

Build Your House on the Rock

^24 (A)“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like ^(B)a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. ²⁶ And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like ^(C)a foolish man who built his house on the sand. ²⁷ And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

⁴ But you ^(A)are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. ⁵ For you are all ^(B)children^[a] of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. ⁶ So then ^(C)let us not sleep, as others do, but let us ^(D)keep awake and ^(E)be sober. ⁷ For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, ^(F)are drunk at night. ⁸ But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, ^(G)having put on the breastplate of ^(H)faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.

²³ Now may ^(A)the God of peace himself ^(B)sanctify you completely, and may your ^(C)whole ^(D)spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at ^(E)the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. ^24 (F)He who calls you is faithful; ^(G)he will surely do it.

⁵ Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born ^(A)of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. ^6 (B)That which is born of the flesh is ^(C)flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.^{[a] 7 (D)}Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You^[b] must be born ^(E)again.’ ^8 (F)The wind^[c] blows ^(G)where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

⁹ You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact ^(A)the Spirit of God dwells in you. ^(B)Anyone who does not have ^(C)the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.

¹³ In him you also, when you heard ^(A)the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, ^(B)were sealed with the ^(C)promised Holy Spirit, ¹⁴ who is ^(D)the guarantee^[a] of our ^(E)inheritance until ^(F)we acquire ^(G)possession of it,^{[b] (H)}to the praise of his glory.

The Parable of the Talents

^14 (A)“For ^(B)it will be like a man ^(C)going on a journey, who called his servants^[a] and entrusted to them his property. ¹⁵ To one he gave five ^(D)talents,^[b] to another two, to another one, ^(E)to each according to his ability. Then he ^(F)went away. ¹⁶ He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. ¹⁷ So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. ¹⁸ But he who had received the one talent went and ^(G)dug in the ground and hid his master's money. ¹⁹ Now ^(H)after a long time the master of those servants came and ^(I)settled accounts with them. ²⁰ And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ ²¹ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and ^(J)faithful servant.^{[c] (K)}You have been faithful over a little; ^(L)I will set you over much. Enter into ^(M)the joy of your master.’ ²² And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ ²³ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ ²⁴ He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be ^(N)a hard man, reaping ^(O)where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, ²⁵ so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, ^(P)you have what is yours.’ ²⁶ But his master answered him, ‘You ^(Q)wicked and ^(R)slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? ²⁷ Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. ²⁸ So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. ^29 (S)For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. ³⁰ And ^(T)cast ^(U)the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place ^(V)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’